To improve low lapping efficiency of silicon nitride balls in conventional lapping
process, fixed abrasive lapping technology for ceramic balls is investigated in this paper. Diamond
abrasives and photosensitive resin are used to fabricate the fixed abrasive plate. The lapped ball
surface is observed with microscopy to identify the dominant wear mechanism. The results show
that the material removal rate of the fixed abrasive lapping is about 20 times of that of conventional
free abrasive lapping process, and the roughness is close to the conventional one. The experimental
results indicate that the fixed abrasive lapping technology is a promising process to instead of
conventional free abrasive lapping process for ceramic balls in rough and semi-finishing process.